In order to reduce shock and help prevent injuries, currently the bicycle industry has been providing a number of solutions, such as springs or liquid type shock-absorber within the front fork, springs installed under the seat, shock-absorber and springs installed under the upper frame tube. Although, the above solutions do achieve some shock-absorbing effect, cyclists still suffer injuries.
When shock occurs on an uneven road, the cyclist generally grips more firmly which can increase the likelihood of some injuries. The fixed link between the handlebar and the handlebar stem seems to be one of the main causes of certain injuries. By making the present invention much more adjustable for various types of cycling and a wide range of cyclists' desires, the present invention will be more likely to take hold in the market place thereby becoming more available to consumers and thereby reducing certain injuries causes that the industry seems to continue to overlook.
Various types of shock-absorbing handlebar mounting systems are already known. Some of these are listed below;
Inventors are aware of U.S. Pat. No. 367,368 issued to J. S. Copeland Aug. 2, 1887, entitled “Velocipede”. Inventors are also aware of U.S. Pat. No. 626,602 issued to J. T. Fenton, et al. on Jun. 6, 1899, entitled “Bicycle Handle Bar”. Inventors are also aware of U.S. Pat. No. 5,181,436 issued to Lai on Jan. 26, 1993 entitled “Stem for interconnecting a handlebar and a head tube of a bicycle”. Inventors are also aware of U.S. Pat. No. 5,660,406 issued to Menze, sen. on Aug. 26, 1997, entitled “Sprung steering system front structure for bicycles”. Inventors are also aware of U.S. Pat. No. 5,887,490 issued to Dittmar on Mar. 30, 1999, entitled “Adjustable handlebar stem using a locking pin system”.
The above patents, although useful, do not cover the specific application and process of the present invention. Bicycles are a multiple-purpose vehicle for transportation, sports, and recreational activities and consumers and thus bicycle manufacturers don't readily progress to certain improvements, unless these improvements are more variably adaptable.